City Grill Group, the leading Romanian restaurant group with a consolidated turnover of €90 million in 2025, announces a €7 million investment in a new production facility dedicated to its ready meals range, located in Buftea, Ilfov County. The majority of the budget is allocated to state-of-the-art technology and sustainable production solutions. The new facility will increase production capacity from 5,000 to over 15,000 portions per day. The investment focuses on automation, operational efficiency, and low-impact environmental solutions, supporting a scalable model while ensuring consistent product quality.

This expansion comes at a time when the ready-to-eat category is entering a new phase. Beyond convenience, purchasing decisions increasingly reflect a balance between time, quality, and predictability. What was once seen as a compromise is now becoming an integrated part of everyday consumption, both in retail and in proximity locations such as office buildings.

For City Grill Group, the development of the ready meals segment is a natural extension of its restaurant experience into a format suited for daily consumption. The new facility is designed as an industrial-scale professional kitchen, covering the entire production flow—from cooking to portioning, rapid cooling, and sustainable modified-atmosphere packaging. Meals are prepared close to delivery time, without the use of preservatives.

“Our philosophy has remained unchanged since 2004: fresh ingredients, authentic recipes, and flawless execution. This investment allows us to scale that philosophy significantly, without compromising quality. We want the taste of a City Grill dish to be consistent, whether it’s served in a restaurant, purchased in retail, or delivered to an office building,” says Mihaela Boșneag, Operations Director, City Grill Group.

A portfolio built on familiar dishes, with expansion into international cuisines

The current ready meals range includes 21 products across three categories: 5 cream soups, 9 salads, appetizers, and main courses, and 7 desserts. Best-selling items confirm the preference for familiar, comforting flavors, including chicken schnitzel with mashed potatoes, stuffed cabbage rolls, marinated meatballs, roasted pepper vegetable cream soup, Russian salad, eggplant salad, and whipped beans. Among desserts, chocolate cherry cake and mille-feuille remain top choices.

The company is also preparing to expand the portfolio with Asian-inspired dishes, responding to the growing demand for variety and new culinary experiences.

Scaling capacity vs. maintaining consistency

Increasing production capacity is not only about volume, it is about execution. In a category where standardization and consistency are critical, investment in technology becomes essential to maintain quality at scale. The new facility is designed to support this balance through more efficient processes, improved flow control, and the flexibility to respond to demand fluctuations, which in this category can be concentrated and difficult to predict.

Currently, production operates at around 5,000 portions per day, indicating high utilization of existing capacity and confirming the growth potential of the segment.

“Ready meals has become a category with its own growth logic. We are investing €7 million because we see real, expanding demand and because we have the culinary infrastructure to address it properly. Tripling production capacity is not a be, it is a response to a market that is maturing faster than we anticipated,” adds Mihaela Boșneag.

The hybrid consumer: between home cooking and quality ready-to-eat

This investment reflects a broader shift in consumer behavior. Home cooking is not disappearing, but it is being redefined, as more consumers adopt hybrid habits alternating between dining out, cooking at home, and choosing high-quality ready meals. In this context, differentiation comes down to execution: delivering the same taste experience in a format that is accessible and time-efficient. Through this investment, City Grill strengthens its position in a growing segment and expands its business model beyond restaurants, addressing everyday consumption needs in a more flexible way.

The expansion of the Buftea facility will generate 100 new jobs across production, logistics, and quality control, contributing directly to the local community while strengthening the group’s operational capabilities.

*This is a press release.